Prototype: Reemergence
by Tex Shadows
Summary: James Heller thought that by consuming Mercer, he would be rid of him forever. He was wrong.


_A/N: Just a heads-up; I have been thinking about this for a looong time, and it's supposed to sound disjointed. So, I hope you enjoy it! Personally, I do not undertand the hu. attitude/personality shift of Mercer from the first to the second one, so if you are looking for an "accurate" representation, you probably will not find it here. Anyway, I hope you enjoy it! Again..._

* * *

Prototype: Reemergence

It had been months since James Heller had consumed Alex Mercer. He had expected the nightmare to end, but he felt Mercer's presence all around him, scratching at his brain. He tried to tell Dana about it, but she dismissed it.

He learned to suppress these feelings of uneasiness, but there were times that he would black out, waking up in strange places. He would hear about people spotting Mercer around the city.

One day he woke up next to Mercer's very evasive bitch, but before he could kill her, he blacked out once again.

* * *

Mercer took control just in time to save her. He couldn't hold on whenever he slept, which was dangerous for her; he knew that Heller wanted her dead. He just couldn't stay away from her. After all this time, Mercer still didn't know why they were drawn to each other. She started to stir.

"Lex?" she asked. She only called him that when she was still half asleep.

"I'm here," he answered. "But not for long. Heller is fighting for control. I can't hold on for much longer. You should go." He could feel Heller banging against the door in his mind. It wouldn't be long until he took control again.

She started to get up and get dressed. He would have done the same if it wasn't for the pounding in his head. It was all he could do to keep Heller contained. She turned to give him a kiss before taking to the sky, her beautiful wings beating powerfully. He hung on until she was out of range. It was then that Heller took over once again.

* * *

Heller knew that something was wrong. It was getting harder and harder to hold on to consciousness. He didn't know how to stop it. He could feel his mind being ripped apart. He knew that Mercer exploded out of him whenever he lost consciousness. He knew that he had to get rid of him somehow.

* * *

It had been a couple of weeks since Mercer had taken over. Heller thought that he had finally faded out of his body, but he couldn't have been more wrong.

* * *

Unknown to Heller, Mercer was biding his time, gathering more and more strength. He would escape, and when he did, he would rip Heller apart from the inside. He would show Heller what betraying him would cost. He would show Heller what true power was.

* * *

Mercer allowed Heller to sink into complacency. It had been another month since he took control. He retreated into the unknown recesses of Heller's mind, keeping out of sight of Heller's thoughts.

* * *

Heller knew that Mercer was still a part of him. He had finally thought of a way to rid himself of Mercer forever. He had to kill the reason that Mercer wanted to live. He figured that if he had woken up next to Mercer's bitch that often that she had to mean a lot to him. And he knew just how to do it.

* * *

Heller started digging around in his head, searching for Mercer's presence. When he found him, he pushed Mercer to the surface, causing him to take control. He knew that Mercer would lead him straight to her, and when he did, Heller would take control and rip her to shreds; just as he did to Mercer.

* * *

Mercer was surprised by this sudden change of control. He tried to sink back into Heller's mind, but he was being pushed to the surface. Something was wrong. He tried to think of why Heller would want him to have control, but he found out too late. She had found him. His eyes widened in horror.

"Run!" Mercer shouted.

She looked at him in confusion. "Alex?"

"Go! Now! He'll kill you!" Realization crossed her face and she started running in the other direction, but it was too late. Heller had taken control.

He caught up to her easily and snatched her up by her throat.

"Now, now, just where do you think you're going?" Heller said.

"Let me go," she snarled, her wings exploding out of her back.

He brought her closer, still keeping a tight grip on her throat. "You know I can't do that." Heller whispered into her ear. She struggled in his grip, but it was no use; Heller was much looked so pathetic and he wondered what Mercer saw in her.

"Kill me then. I'm obviously no match for you. If you really wanted me dead, you would have done it already, but you need me for something." She was spirited, he'd give her that. "But there's no point in making me help you get rid of Alex. I love him, and I would die before I'd betray him." She was loyal too. Her words sparked a rage in him.

"Oh, you love him, do you? Well, I loved my wife, and that son of a bitch killed her!" Heller was screaming in her face now.

Despite her current position, a somber expression commanded her face. "I'm sorry about your wife, truly. But what do we have to do with that?"

"You have everything to do with it! When Mercer released that virus, I lost my wife!"

She suddenly tensed, and he could feel her rage seeping through her skin. "You think that you're the only one who has lost someone to the virus? I lost my life, and Alex saved me!" Her voice softened. "There was another woman before me. They were close too, but she sold him out! She betrayed him! I can only hope that I'm able to be the one stable thing in his life! That I'm the only one who accepts him in this fucked up world we now live in."

Heller was taken aback by her sudden outburst. His grip on her throat relaxed ever so slightly and she took advantage of it, ripping herself out of his reach and taking to the sky. He reached up for her, but it was no use; she was too far away.

"All according to plan." Heller wasn't stupid enough to let her get away without a little insurance. Which is why he planted a tracker on her. Now he didn't need Mercer to find her. After bringing Mercer to the surface and then shoving him back down, Mercer had become quite agitated and started ripping away the inside of his brain, making it very difficult to kill her even if he wanted to. Now he could track her without Mercer knowing.

* * *

The next day, Heller began his search. With the help of the tracker, he found her quite easily. He kept out of sight while he followed her to a more secluded place.

Once he was sure that she was alone, Heller made his move. Dropping from a nearby roof, he readied his blade. He still wasn't sure how to kill her. After all, she was like Mercer, and if he started tearing her apart, piece by piece, Mercer would probably kill him. Heller cursed under his breath. He decided that he would try spearing her first. He started his charge, but she had heard him, taking to the sky. Before she was out of range, he extended his whipfist, catching her in mid-air. He heard a satisfying crunch as she connected with the ground. A gasp of pain. She tried to ascend once again, and he again brought her plummeting to the ground.

"What do you want from me?!" Her voice sounded strangled.

"I want you dead!"Heller shouted at her. He knew that he had to make this quick. Mercer could hear her any second. Heller dragged her almost-limp body to him. "I''ll make this quick," he said as he plunged his blade into her chest, straight through her heart. She screamed, and then went limp. As she fell to the ground, a roar of despair erupted in his mind. Mercer was taking control, and he was much stronger this time. Heller laughed without humor.

"It's too late, Mercer! Kill me if you want; I don't care. She's already dead. There's no bringing her back from that!" He grimaced as he saw himself changing into Mercer. Out of the corner of his eye, Heller saw her start to stir. He swore. She started to get up. Heller could feel himself fading away. He was losing. Mercer was going to win, after all he had done.

Heller didn't care anymore. He was tired of it all. Dana would take care of his daughter. He drifted into unconsciousness one final time.

* * *

Mercer could feel Heller give up. He would finally be free. She would be all right. Mercer gave one final shove and eradicated Heller.

He had reemerged.

* * *

_A/N: So, how was it? Review? Oh, forgot to mention, this is kind of like an-epilogue?- to another story that I am working on, but I thought that it could also stand alone... Hence the "mysterious" girl that Mercer is so "bleeding heart" over._


End file.
